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Biology of Change

Who are we? What are we? Bruce offers an explanation of how we can change our biology, how we can ascend from our current self-sabotaging world at-large. Too often we ignore the fact that the most life-affirming thing we can do is to know ourselves.

We espouse this notion as a result of wisdom shed thousands of years ago, yet we have numerous scientific examples of how our feelings and thoughts affect our reality.

Bruce and an old friend, Steve Bhaerman (aka Swami Beyondananda) teamed up to put these discoveries into a great book, Spontaneous Evolution, that shares even more details and great anecdotal side notes and heart warming rants from the Swami. I highly recommend it. What’s in your bottle?

In addition to Lipton’s model of the biological upwising, I would take the delivery system to deeper level, based on the discoveries in quantum mechanics and the growing consideration for quantum entanglement to be yet another name for a very old path. First of all, we know that thought is invisible, has no physical characteristics or density and can move matter when properly directed.

Granted there are few and maybe even questionable scientific studies to some, but the scientists at Los Alamos long ago realized that their thoughts had an effect on the results of their experiments, even the physical manifestations. So if this is a hidden effect that these folks have brought to light, why are we still giving it lip service and ignoring the obvious – we can train our minds to make a better life and world. I know, it is far easier said that done, but the fact that the logic path seems like so much sense being made common is undeniable. Or is it?

Alright, let’s look around a bit to see if there are any other bits and pieces of information that might lead to this potentially magnificent transcendence of human experience. Indeed we’ve been waiting on science to make sense of all the religious superstitions and spiritual understanding so that we could transcend the old ways while acknowledging the leadership and wisdom that got us here now. I’m not a half-full or half-empty guy. I have the carafe and a warehouse full of wine, or whatever your favorite liquid.

I look at things from a fool’s view, upside down. Why? Because when you peer at chaos knowing there is order within, it is far easier to find it and share. Viewing our reality from the perspective of how it appears to be connected in whatever awareness you may have of this notion totally flips the view, from separative to unified. We don’t see what makes us different. We see what makes us the same.

Where can we find that presented at a purely scientific level, yet find some reflection in the old ways or ancient texts that can at least be deemed, ‘possible?’

I’m going to turn around again and take that question in reverse. What is the worst thing we could possibly encounter according to one of the main religions on Earth? The Anti-Christ? Okay. We often find freedom in overcoming what we fear, right? Just follow me for a moment. Math is involved with science, right? Is there a magic number? Hmmm… 666?

It is supposed to be the number of man as well. So, what is man? What is our basic substructure that allows us to be in physical form? Carbon, right? Do you see where I’m going? Carbon has an atomic structure of 6 protons, 6 electrons and 6 neutrons. If anything, 666 could be the number of man. It certainly would put us all on a level playing field with equal foundation for all. Could this be the wisdom in the number? Okay, now what?

Can we consider our environment a ‘thoughtmosphere’ that we can observe as our thoughts permeate our bodies and, according to some sources, may even extend to quite a distance around us. How? One aspect is electromagnetic energy from our brain. Another is the ‘chi’ coursing through our nervous system. Yet another are the sensations we feel when in the presence of certain individuals, different from emotions.

So there is an intangible component that could, given our current understanding of electrochemical neurocircuitry, begin completely new pathways, with the assistance of one of those intangible benefits – our thoughts – aggravated, circumvented, contemplated, detected, implemented, infected, mutilated, rejected and underrated. At least that is where we’ve been getting assistance… unconscious behavior and run a muck thinking.

Let’s look at how that fits in with the last of the apocalyptic notions, the end of the Mayan Calendar or, more appropriately, the end of the galactic year. It is only a cycle of time, yet the implications brought up by the multitude of sources regarding the advancement of consciousness during this time sure fits the apocalypse of the Bible as well. Neither were intended as ‘end times’ scenarios, but featured a new era among humans – something transformational. It is a closing of one age and an entrance into another, but not only that, it appears to be a massive shift in how we look at life on Earth and with each other. Will we see world peace in our lifetimes?

That will remain to be seen and surely will be a product of how well we learn to work together to restore our environment, if we can, and end poverty in the world. Those would be the two greatest indicators of our success and, in reality, nothing short of that will give us reason to say we are truly a civilized world based on current best practices and thinking.

Now you might ask, “So, how does this affect my life. What’s in it for me?” That is the absolute best question you could ask right now. Why? Because in order to get the best answer, you’ll have to get involved in the process of answering it. Huh? Here’s another way of looking at it: you get what you give. In other words, the better you learn how to practice what you know is best for you, the more open and receptive you will be to better ways of being, doing and having your results be the evidence that is irrefutable.

Each of us have the opportunity of taking an inventory of who we are, where we are, how we are and when we are in the precious present. It’s part of the best practices of self-awareness, so we might as well dive in. What is the worst that could happen? You might find out you haven’t been as honest with yourself as you could have been. Cool. Did you get hit by lightning? Did your body tremble with fear as you faced the fact? Alright, so nothing happened. Imagine if you could change and be a better you? No one is perfect, so we can all improve a bit.

Alright, so if you run out of questions or would like to entertain some that have led to a better life for others, you might want to look into a short book I wrote about coursework for connecting to your inner-most observer. It’s called, aptly, “Cosmic Conundrum: Who Am I?” and you can find it as a soft cover or on Kindle, both available through Amazon for $19.95 and $9.99 respectfully. It is the result of over 30 years of intense personal growth and development in self-awareness.

I think any time one goes down this path, we wish to share what we’ve found in as many ways as possible. Although there is a cost for coursework, you’ll find a lot more of my work is available for free if you just do a search in your favorite engine. For now, you have the opportunity for an amazing 2013 with just this information alone. I am blessed by sharing. Namaste….

This was a blank post for a couple of days, just to make a point. The future is completely malleable, a blank canvas if you will. I’ve got to thank Fleming Funch for the graphic and his development of one of the first community-oriented websites back in the early 00s, NewCiv.org. So, what kind of new paradigm do you/we want for 2013? Do we even want one? If we did, what would it include and/or eliminate?

For me, I’ve not been able to decide what I want to be when I grow up, or that I want to grow up at all. At 55 you’d think I would have everything in line and be well on my way to retirement. In today’s world I’m not sure retirement is even an option. However, what has been a driving force in my quiet moments is the passion for purpose and the fulfillment of a vision I was given so many years ago, nearly 40 now.

The vision wasn’t full of scenery, the kind of rapid fire visuals that accompany the unfolding of a contemporary experience you might read about from others who have seen the future and are reporting back. Instead, it was empty of preconception or prognostication. The vision was simply full of potential with only the points of light (I understood them as points of consciousness) gathered to work together to assist in the development of a new world order.

Now a ‘new world order’ has connotations that don’t necessarily make it a good thing these days. It smacks of the Orwellian style of global village where control and dominance of some less-than-helpful regime ultimately takes advantage of everyone and everything in order to benefit a few. I really think we have that already and maybe you do as well. Does that mean that we are stuck with it? I think not.

Last year’s arrival of the Occupy Movement demonstrated that there is a level of discontent and support for change, acknowledging that how things are now isn’t working. It doesn’t take a diligent researcher or scientist to recognize that we have some huge problems lurking with an elephant in the middle of the room. Actions being taken by some are counter-intuitive and lack the common sense that seems so obvious to those who have little attachment to the outcome of the current agenda – whatever that is.

Whatever the agenda is, it appears to completely disregard the one element that could unite us all – learning how to get along. Instead the focus has been how to get around, over, through and (your choice of preposition) what has to be considered in order for us to move forward as a planetary civilization. We use the thinking and the tools that created the problems and expect solutions to emerge as if by magic.

It appears we are lacking the initiative to call a halt to our methodologies that only continue to exacerbate and masturbate. Our belief systems operate on control whether it is people, places or things. Military, political, religious and social architecture have become so rigid with the the idea that there is always an enemy that we have forgotten how to be friends, lovers and neighbors who look out for each other not with aggression or weapons, but with love and service.

In the US, supposedly a nation with Christian values, we ignore the basic tenets of Christ’s teaching regularly. I’m not a ‘Christian’ per se, but Christ’s teachings rank with all the great masters from all the religions who basically say the same thing… love one another. We forget that if we feed our perceived ‘enemy’ then the likelihood of them remaining an ‘enemy’ is less. Most often the meal conversations evolve toward some kind of unity and similarity and, God forbid, we might get to know each other and see how similar we really are instead.

This is the thing about changing our paradigm to one that makes sense common, brings out our humanity and renders harmless the ill-will of those who are afraid of losing what they’ve gained. I would offer that we can engage a new living awareness that has nothing to do with any current or old belief system, but we have a real challenge in helping others – cohorts, friends, neighbors, etc, – to simply change their thinking for a little while, try on a new hat or pair of glasses and see the world with new eyes.

We just passed yet another possibility for total annihilation that, yet again, many thought was going to happen because they didn’t bother to do the research and understand what the indigenous cultures who created the calendars intended for the human race to understand, or even if they did. In reality, their intention and projection (if one can call it that) was for a new consciousness to evolve throughout humanity – one of harmony among people and planet – as a result of the progression of time. To me that seems like the natural progression for a planetary civilization to make and to hold as a goal for their sustainability to say the least.

Recent scientific discoveries show that there has been activity going on along the Milky Way for much longer than we might have suspected. The image to the left is from Fermi, a NASA telescope that was launched in 2008. Obviously it has traveled a long way already to give us this kind of astounding imagery. Coronal Mass Ejections (CMEs) have been happening for some time as well. We don’t have enough historical data to predict or even know the patterns of activity over the course of Earth’s history, so any projections would be speculative at best.

Speaking of speculations… the subtle energy baths, bubbles, particles and waves (for you quantum viewers) create a mixture of sensory opportunity. Some feel that on this playing field our inner sensory array, beknownst or unbeknownst to us, receives these cosmic messages and translates them into subtle impressions and movements of data within our BEing.

The data retrieval and optimization of our inner software seems to depend on how well we ask questions and listen in the silence for our ‘downloads’ to present a multi-sensory display – usually some warm fuzzies [sensations] and a video snippet [eyes open or closed doesn’t always matter] that accompanies the ‘realization’ in the moment. It may happen slightly differently for each individual, but the general theme is consistent. Too often we are unable to articulate these events well enough to share.

Multidimensional consciousness, however misunderstood, does include the potential for non-linear or even what is being called quantum entanglement experiences. Now this might sound too scientific, but on a practical level it is an attempt to explain how the various aspects of this multidimensional experience happen, like synchronicity for instance. We all have those experiences, but we don’t necessarily know how they occur. Translating a non-linear experience into a linear framework is touchy at best.

Obviously some kind of ‘energy’ or data has to interact in the matrix of consciousness, the thoughtmosphere, in order for actions to take place and results to be experienced. We find that this seems to happen more consistently with those who have an expanded awareness. This increased awareness also coincides with a general sense of the advancement of consciousness, the real movement toward a new world order of harmony among people and planet.

We can observe this on yet another level of scientific order, which I think fits perfectly into our advancement as a planetary civilization molecule, if you will. Ilya Prigogine rocked the scientific world with his theories on disequilibrium and made this statement: “When a molecule’s implicate (existing) order starts to fall apart, the entity faces a moment of choice, the ‘bifurcation point.’ It can either go out of existence, or recognize itself at a higher level to accommodate the new variables.” Consider the thoughtmosphere of the human race as this molecule now.

What that means is that a new living awareness results from the turn toward love at the bifurcation point. This turn toward love brings noticeable changes in one’s environment, which also speaks to the notion that Bruce Lipton presents in our ability to change our biology as a result of how we perceive our environment. Seeing the world through new eyes is important now.

How we advance in the next few years, maybe even this year will set the standard, is more important than ever now. It is imperative to shift our focus from the old fear, guilt and shame game to a new view that puts our processing on hold for just a fraction of a moment, allowing us to pause for the cause (our lives) and take a breath (inspiration) before launching into old patterns that were created from the thinking and tools that got us into this mess. Can we do it?

I cannot begin to delineate all the features and benefits of such a shift, nor can I begin to cover all the areas affected (and how) throughout our global society because of its complexity across the gamut of perplexing challenges currently facing our leadership. What I can do is encourage a deeper look, a longer pause in reflecting on your real values and how you live them. I think we all want to love and be love, as corny as that may sound, so how are we demonstrating that in our daily lives and relationships?

Values, Morals and Ethics – Personal Ethics and Life

Personal conviction and ethics statement: I will to do good for all, desiring to serve humanity in the highest and best use of my mind/body/spirit complex, in the facilitation of a new world order of harmony among people and planet through presenting alternative solutions to community service delivery, participating in local socioeconomic and environmental service programs, development of a solutions-based state-of-the-art model community, and developing a website that promotes these endeavors and more in the change of consciousness necessary for sustainable living on Planet Earth.

It has been said that values, morals and ethics are inextricably tied together. Values are what we learn from childhood; the ‘stuff’ we absorb from our parents and immediate surroundings. Morals are the intrinsic beliefs developed from the value systems of how we ‘should’ behave in any given situation. Ethics, on the other hand, are how we actually do behave in the face of difficult situations that test our moral fiber. In his book, “How Good People Make Tough Choices,” Rushworth Kidder notes four basic paradigms of ethical decisions: justice versus mercy; short-term versus long-term; individual versus community; and truth versus loyalty. He goes on to define the concepts further:

The point behind the justice-versus-mercy paradigm is that fairness, equity, and even-handed application of the law often conflict with compassion, empathy, and love.

Short-term versus long-term, or now versus then, reflect the difficulties arising when immediate needs or desires run counter to future goals or prospects.

The individual-versus-community paradigm can be restated as us versus them, self versus others, or the smaller versus the larger group.

Truth versus loyalty can be seen as honesty or integrity versus commitment, responsibility, or promise-keeping.

Expressing one’s personal grasp of ethics and life may not always be understood in the context of the world at large, the immediate environment, or even amongst the intimate others in the household. This is usually due to the fact that every person has some difference, small or great, in the development of their belief systems. Belief systems are established early in life through environments of home, church, school, and social gatherings which help to mold and shape these beliefs.

Most of these beliefs and patterns of behavior are established through the unconscious observations and experiences of childhood in the aforementioned environments. These I refer to as ‘outer’ experiences which are akin to the ‘nurture’ piece of the ‘nature-nurture’ developmental processes. Allow me to use my own ‘outer’ experience as an example. My personal ethics and leadership feeds my enthusiasm for sharing.

I knew that I was adopted by the time I was five. My adoptive parents were ideal by some standards, demonstrating honesty, integrity, and willingness to address conflict with style and grace even in the most difficult of situations. Dad was a tool and die machinist, building plastic injection molds for General Motors optical division and was also a 32nd Degree Mason. Mom was an educator with a master’s degree in Music and English and taught middle school English and Literature.

They were a formidable team for an adolescent with growing pains, encouraging me to challenge and explore my world. My parents taught me that honesty was the best policy, even when the details may not be too favorable. They taught me the meaning of trust which was not being afraid even when I felt vulnerable. Of course that does not mean that I am able to apply that knowledge always, although age does have its advantages.

Where obvious bottlenecks occur in personal and professional environments I still tend to ‘go deep’ in conversations even at the risk of rejection. Paths need to be cleared of trash for solid relationships to develop. Now mom suffers from dementia and dad has advanced stages of Parkinson’s and I’m glad there were no bottlenecks in our relationship as I got older. Oh, there were some years of distance while I’ve been in Phoenix and yet we’re still close.

I also began having metaphysical, or paranormal, experiences around my 6th birthday. I refer to these as ‘inner’ experiences, or what I feel akin to the ‘nature’ element of the developmental processes. Our values, morals and ethics and intrinsic functionality in society stems from this place, although it is the ‘outer’ details that generally rule the scene. For most, the internal experience is often ignored because of the lack of external acceptance or validation. There was a disparity with my parents due to the lack of a frame of reference regarding my metaphysical meanderings which often caused me to question my own reality, by the way.

‘Trust but verify’ builds reliance on others and it is rare that one can find other psychic constituents in the workplace or in life for that matter. Consequently, the balance toward trusting others was often weighted by desire rather than discernment. The discernment came later as I began to understand that not all people were like my parents. Even they kept their distance in discussing certain spiritual experiences or subjects.

The lack of personal experience often creates barriers that are difficult to bridge, if at all. In fact, I found that disbelief and skepticism were more prominent than ever. People were often afraid of what they did not understand and sometimes allowed that fear to provoke unnecessary violence. Fear stimulates a plethora of disconnecting responses. I had learned that life was stimulated by connectedness so this presented a great enigma. How can one close this gap, at times a chasm, so that it can be reconciled or resolved? Personal ethics ascends to personal leadership in the face of seeming insurmountable odds at times.

Others’ motives were not always utilitarian, nor are their values, morals and ethics. Heck, mine weren’t always either. We all have some cosmic conundrums in selfish motivations from time to time. Some live their lives by those motivations. The resulting actions were often misplaced personal libertarian expressions of selfishness without regard to personal boundaries and affects on the environment, fueled by the presence of plethora of distractions from what is ‘healthy or prudent’ to what works for now or provides the most personal benefit. Honesty and integrity show up in the leaders who are willing to bear the cross, so to speak, of clearing the path to success of its garbage.

This process of restoring integrity (the congruence of values, ethics, and morals) can have emotionally devastating affects if one allows the projections of others to rule their lives. People with problems most often will project those problems onto others until someone or something presents a situation that challenges the person to change and provides a safe environment for them to do so. There are others who seem to attract these situations, usually because they have committed themselves to service in some way. The strength of character is reflective of the trials and tribulations one has addressed in their life and empowered by their ability to ascend from emotional manipulation and/or trickery. The proverbial look in the mirror allows us to see what we need to transcend, even in ourselves.

As I got older I learned that the inner life I was leading provided more concrete understanding of the nature of the outer reality and the actions of others. I read profusely for a time, gobbling up the great works of secular and spiritual masters to glean better understanding of my own experiences and to grow personally and professionally. Putting myself in the hot seat at seminars and workshops tested what I learned and tempered my sword of truth over time. I learned over the years that questions asked internally with sincerity are answered in a variety of ways, not always in the moment they are asked. We all still have to deal with human emotions and the occasional absurdity of the actions emotions precipitate.

Whether exposing options changed those actions or not varied from situation to situation depending on my ability to question congruency, the awareness of connectivity, and framing the emotional feelings and sensations verbally so that we could discuss them. Articulation without projection is a most challenging process. Most ‘first responses’ in chelas on the path are projective in nature, often defensive and full of irrationalities. The challenge to change still presents itself as I get older and more experienced with introducing interrogatives that do not put people on edge, although sometimes its fun to watch them squirm. However, insecurity is rampant in our society and even the most innocuous questions too often produce defensive postures. Fear, guilt and shame have ruled our lives for too long.

In my teens the greatest influence came through the Order of DeMolay, which is sort of a young men’s (14-21) Christian-based precursor to the Masonic Order. It was named after Jaques DeMolay, a Knights Templar, who gave up his life rather than betray his brethren during the Crusades in Europe. I was elected Master Councilor at fifteen and at 17, competed at the state Conclave through a speech on filial love and in one-meter springboard diving, achieving an honorable mention for the speech and third place in diving. Receiving the International DeMolay Medal for Saving a Human Life was another significant emotional event at the Conclave.

I had been quick to respond to an event at the public pool where I was a lifeguard the previous summer. I reached an unconscious young girl just after being struck by another diver, having perceived the outcome and entering the water before the actual event. Her parents pursued the newspaper and recognition of my attentiveness. I was just fortunate to have been watching and able to act on the event. Our Chapter Dad submitted the paperwork to the International Council without my awareness. Saving the life of another is a personal blessing for which there is truly no verbal or written example of the heart-felt response. I chose not to pursue the path of Free Masonry, although I honor its foundation of personal service toward the highest good of all even if personal sacrifice is necessary.

I learned the values, morals and ethics of teamwork in school through clubs, group projects and sports and individual participation in transformation: a guide for change support of the team through baseball, golf (medalist my senior year), and track. The competitive spirit was alive within me, yet it was not a ‘win-at-all-cost’ attitude by any means. I had a lot of natural academic talent and physical ability that I took for granted. I realized later in life that my knack for accomplishment stemmed from simply not knowing what I could not do. I missed opportunities because I chose to clutter my head with drugs late in high school and early in college.

In time I learned to be genuine with my affection and my attention; being cautious and sensitive in matters of the heart and a bit bold in exploring life’s opportunities. According to many authorities relationships should be more caring and considerate as we mature. Much later, my involvement in education and child development (divorced w/four children and an unfulfilled desire to be near them) demonstrated that the ‘norm’ during those years is quite ‘me-centered’ and emotional maturity comes later for most, if at all. I’m sure my behavior was quite indicative of a teenager, yet in the quieter moments my thoughts ran very deep.

I graduated 10th in my class of 300 and had no idea at the time that I could have been valedictorian had I put just a little effort toward excelling in academics. My classroom pranks brought my average down as well, having met the challenge of classmates without thinking of personal outcome. Teachers’ kids/preachers’ kids… not much difference. I got caught up in ‘wanting to be liked’ and did some inappropriate things. Academic and athletic abilities came naturally, yet my appreciation for them was diminished by my exploration into pot and hallucinogens. The drugs served two things – emotional escape and, surprisingly, a way to find a deeper connection with life – a paradox that seems to be prevalent in progressive lifestyles. They opened my ears, eyes and heart to new awareness that seemed an integral part of reality.

Still some do not understand this path is only short-lived, a mere stepping stone on the way to enlightenment and not a destination by any stretch of the imagination. Unfortunately many get caught in the quagmire and never return to reality. Some remain on the fringe and do quite well as pioneers, like Carlos Castaneda and Terrence McKenna. Many more have moved on to greater accomplishments in many fields. I still find that I let secondary priorities affect my efforts to follow my true passions in life, which I sense is the norm for most of us. Daily living offers the chance of many opportunities which call for the ethical and moral considerations for self and others before acting on those choices.

My second quarter in college started off with a real bang. I’d been dating a girl since my sophomore year in high school; ‘breaking up’ with her upon entering college because I was not sure I would be able to maintain monogamy. The first quarter brought some heavy emotional days of missing her so during quarter break I went back to ask her to marry me. I lost it after I found out she was already married, nearly a month prior. I was an emotional basket case for a long time afterward. My heart sunk in devastation and I returned to school determined to give my life to something with meaning. In respect of this I knelt in prayer and asked ‘Father’ to know truth and was willing to die for it if necessary. It was the most intense prayer I’d ever made.

A week later, while in meditation listening to ‘In the Morning Day’ on Journey’s first album, I heard a voice immediately after the lyrics of the song. It said, “Bruce, are you willing to die for what you believe in?” I paused for a moment, checking my beliefs (Christ in an ‘expanded’ view), and replied, “Yes.” Immediately I felt a tugging on my inner being. I let go and turned to see my body as I was moving away from it. O.B.Es were not unfamiliar, as I’d been having them since childhood. When I turned back to look where I was going, I was engulfed by white light. Personal ethics and personal leadership reached a defining moment in the stream of consciousness of my life. I was completely out of control of my senses, yet felt completely safe in the process.

I was only missing tactile sensations inside the light and as an impetuous teen, I asked if there was more. I felt another sensation of movement and found myself in the center of a sphere of pinpoints of light. After recognizing them as points of consciousness, whether in body or not I was not sure as I sure as heck was not, the voice resumed. “These are those that you are to work with in order to facilitate the new world order. It will happen in your lifetime. Know this to be true. Your path will be full of trials and tribulations. Everything you need will be there at the appointed time. … trust and allow.” At the completion, I returned to my body with a rush of energy followed by a gasp for air, leaving my eyes closed temporarily while getting reacquainted with my body. It was AWESOME!

Returning to my body was in itself a significant emotional event, let alone the previous few moments. I felt my question was answered and I wanted to shout it from the rooftops, consequently told my parents, and found myself talking with a psychiatrist a week later. To this day I still seek answers to the questions remaining from this experience. A blessing in disguise, my tenure with the psychologist helped me to begin to balance my inner and outer experiences, and to find order in my life. I saw him twice before he reflected his findings to me.

After a brief conversation on my third visit, where he revealed his values, morals and ethics in that he shared his view. I was not crazy by any stretch of the imagination. He said that I was going through a ‘spiritual awakening’ of classic nature, only that it usually happened when folks were in their 40’s. He asked me to follow him and we adjourned to the second story of his office in a beautiful historic home in Anderson, Indiana. This resulted in my first tarot card reading, which edified all we had discussed and more. I was ecstatic and intimidated by the ‘truth’ this session revealed.

His advice was to keep my mouth shut because few would understand, especially my adoptive parents who just could not relate to a spiritual awakening instead of a psychologically skewed son for whom they cared dearly and were frightened for his life. At the time I did not know that schizophrenia ran in my mother’s family and fueled their fears. In time the psychiatrist said I would find ‘flow’ (congruency) with my experience and the world. So, I learned that there was much more beyond my understanding of ‘truth’ and it seemed to be leaning toward being everywhere I looked.

I recently visited Dr. Abell on a whim while visiting my family. I dropped by to see if he remembered me and to give him signed copies of my books. I was in luck and only had to wait a couple of hours. He only works one day at week at 77, and I happened to show up that day. Well, he didn’t remember me. We did have a wonderful peer to peer conversation, sharing some stories of what we’ve found in our explorations. It only took 37 years. 🙂

It took a couple of decades to get the picture focused a little bit better through a starting a family, a cross-country move landing in Phoenix, Arizona, and a professional career that took me into many different industries. Metaphysical experiences were even more profound during this period and I feel they even helped to drive a wedge between my wife and I, eventually resulting in our divorce after 12 years of being together and birthing four beautiful children. Releasing emotional attachment to that whole scenario was the most difficult experience I’ve had, yet the essence of it has guided my life continually. I know that all things are connected, we just need to understand how and that emotional attachments are vastly different from ‘connections.’

I had and still have many questions regarding this supposed ‘mission’ I have been given. How was this ‘facilitation of a new world order’ all going to come to fruition? What are the ethical and moral considerations for engaging others? My professional background has become fairly extensive yet pales in comparison to those I hold as icons and leaders in various professional fields. As professional opportunities presented themselves, I began to conceptualize an environment that would demonstrate leading edge technologies in all fields and how they would work together in harmony with people and planet. It had to include every best practice and element of a global community on a micro-community scale.

Eventually the plan began to develop with enough detail that I could at least write an overview of the project, eventually becoming Genesis II. Some years later I met with Carl Bimson, a 91 year-old founder of a bank in Arizona, to share our Genesis II plan. He still had an office in the Valley National Bank building in downtown Phoenix and was available to talk with people by appointment. Mr. Bimson thought it was well thought out and suggested I go find the pieces. Quite unexpectedly, he then went on to explain how his wife’s psychic gifts and card readings had helped tremendously in his business and banking career. What a shock that conversation was… He and two brothers facilitated about 70% of the business development in the progress of Arizona’s growth.

After some time of considering Carl’s advice, I began my Master of Business Administration in project management in 1994 to continue the process of finding the pieces and knowing what to do with them when I did. Now, after achieving certification as a Hypnotherapist and in my second master’s program, I seek to continue the plan and assemble an organizational plan, including all necessary policy development, organizational duties and responsibilities, and management philosophy that will empower the assemblage of a team of dedicated professionals to take Genesis to the next level of development.

Meanwhile, we continue to develop Be The Dream (.biz, .com, .info, .net, .us, .ws – .org is now part of the Global Peace Youth Org and their Be The Dream Campaign honoring the 50-year anniversary of Dr. King’s speech.), our bridge of nonprofit and for profit endeavors, as an exemplary leader on the Internet through demonstrating the concepts of the community in a micro-economic environment. In a sense we are connecting the dots of commerce, education and community through our Cultural Creative ways. Ideas and visions need to have creative outlets, which meant that I had to learn a new skill – web development. What is interesting is that I truly have no idea how these concepts will accepted, let along embraced, by the corporate and/or philanthropic community. I am just a guy with ideas and a vision.

Over the years our values, morals and ethics moved us toward much development work and are we beginning to seek out potential backers and investors for the project. My personal ethics statement applies to the intrinsic dynamic of these projects, empowering results in our quest for success. Even though I’ve done extensive reading on a variety of subjects dealing with the socialization processes, actualizing these endeavors is proving to be quite the challenge, necessitating reflection on my personal code of ethics regularly. Am I really cut out for this? How do I/we engage others and fulfill their needs in the participative process? It is in this process that I am able to facilitate collaborative efforts in larger groups with others who have similar or congruent ethics and are doing something in their community about sharing them?

This will continue to be a great challenge and hopefully secondary priorities will become less distracting and invasive. Faith in ‘doing the right thing’ is imperative throughout the process. I have learned that my own concept of ‘time’ and fruition is often incongruent with the ‘divine’ timing and I am reminded of the need for humility, releasing my personal criticisms of where I ‘should’ be now and allowing the faith and trust in the process to resolve all concerns. It becomes more apparent as we grow older that cleaning up, clearing up, and moving on with refined moral and ethical behavior is the key to success…. everywhere.

Now, having joined with a compatible life partner, we have launched into this program together in order to ‘force’ ourselves to take the next steps in making our dreams reality. I moved on from education to Life Coaching as my ‘next-step’ in acquiring the skills necessary to help bridge inner and outer worlds in others. My partner is currently teaching gifted children in district school. We both tend to need to be in positions where we are compelled to do what is necessary because it is a requirement of the process. Some people work best that way. It seems that most successful people also follow this pattern of creating situations where they have to perform, meet deadlines and rise above the pack to achieve their dreams.

Everything turns out to be a process as time goes on. Utilizing the Internet to help ‘spread the word’ will undoubtedly meet with mixed results. As much as I have learned and know there is much more that I do not. I feel awed and inspired by this discovery process, engaged by the thrill of the next event. I have to rely on serendipity to move this project forward, where patience is a primary factor. I’m encouraged by the personal involvement and visionary efforts of a growing number of concern planetary citizenry, addressing the basic ethical and moral decisions within the scope of service to self and service to others. My hopes are that through this Master of Arts in Organizational Management program I will find more ways to make things real, practical and pragmatic, and continue to grow personally and professionally.

This paper was originally written in 2002 for Leadership 520 – Organizational Ethics, while enrolled in the Master of Arts in Organizational Management program at the University of Phoenix in Arizona. Additions are italicized.

I had an interesting transition from marriage and the corporate ladder in early 1989. I had a major shift in my life to say the least. viagra 100mg I really tried to do my best in both worlds, but failed in each evidently. I acknowledge that I missed some signs in each, yet my inner direction and ‘guidance’ from that place of universal connection we all have seemed to want something different. It was nothing shy of traumatic and tumultuous and I wasn’t sure I’d make it through initially. It was a tough road for me emotionally and spiritually, yet I eventually made it to higher ground.

In the summer of ’89 I got involved with a project called ‘Earth Concert 1989‘ that was being spearheaded by a guy named Jean Hudon from Canada. He’d written a book called The Immortal Child that I found solace in during that period and eventually met up with him later in the year. While networking and looking for sponsors I had the opportunity to present the concept to the Christown Lion’s Club. I knew they were doing events and had a nice insurance policy that could prove very useful in acquiring a site for the Phoenix spoke of the event.

Something unexpected happened, though, and it led to the opportunity to produce and host a television show. The very first show was a conversation between a good friend and I about the focus of the show and what I hoped to accomplish. It was my first time on camera, so I was nervous as heck. Rodger Schnellenberger was actually the second choice for the conversation. Andy Olson, a local radio personality, was supposed to be there, but he got tied up with a meeting at work, so Rodger stepped in. What a gift, too. Rodger had a Masters in Television and Video production from Arizona State University and was very comfortable being put on the spot… in the light. Enjoy the view and I’ll pick it up again in a moment.

The discussion brought up key points regarding the progression of consciousness and new thought that was driving the conversations in the community of folks that many called ‘metaphysical,’ ‘new age,’ or ‘spiritual.’ At that time the internet was non-existent and the proliferation of ‘new thought’ was far from ubiquitous. I’d had the opportunity to put many of the philosophies to the test and distill an awareness that seemed worthy of sharing. I also felt that if I was going through this process, then others must be having these kind of challenges, too.

How the show evolved was nothing less than surreal as the whole chain of events seemed to have an invisible hand guiding them. After the presentation of the Earth Concert concept to the Lion’s Club, the president approached me to get involved with the group. He thought I’d get along famously with a guy who was currently directing a show for them that featured Harry Eagle, the origami man, who was teaching how to make origami.

Long story short, the director and I became fast friends and I went through the training classes to be able to participate in the behind the scenes production components at the public access studio. Our relationship extended into rock climbing and other desert adventures. Several months went by and I learned the various skills required to produce a show; audio and video decks, graphic generation and display, switcher, camera operation and floor direction. It was a lot of fun. At the time I was pretty well networked in the metaphysical community from events I’d been producing, both independently and with others.

One evening I could tell his patience with the talent was growing thin. I was sitting at the computer graphics generator, next to the switcher (used to control the lights, audio mix, camera displays and final feed to the 3/4 inch video recorder) where John was stationed as director. He turned to me during a break and asked me if I’d produce a show about ‘new age’ topics since I was already heavily involved in the community. I hadn’t said a word about my secret desire to do so. I told him I’d love to, but ‘new age’ wasn’t a label I wanted to use for the show as it was still very controversial and I wanted to be able to appeal to a larger population.

It took a little while and when we decided on ‘One World’ we thought it was more congruent with the theme of creating harmony among people and planet. I had no idea how I was going to structure the show, though. One afternoon I was meditating, with nothing particular on my mind, when all of a sudden the ‘format’ showed up. I’d bring guest on and ask a series of questions about who they are, what prompted to do what they are doing personal and professionally from both internal and external perspectives.

From there we’d explore the fears they encountered and, more importantly, how they overcame them and how they seem that pattern or process reflected in the people they worked with and in the community at large. Finally, we would discuss what barriers they see to a global community in harmony, how they see those barriers dissolving and what evidence they can offer of it. The first show was the kick-off where we’d introduce the concept and have some fun discussing the personal and professional paths Rodger and I had trod to date. As you saw, we really had no script and jumped in with both feet from the beginning.

What was really interesting was that Rodger and I had a number of private conversations off camera about the thinness of the veil between this life and the next. I’d had numerous experiences with necromancy, being able to talk to dead people, so our conversations took on a deeper dynamic. I had introduced him to his future wife, Annie, who was staying with me at the time. She was a gifted psychic as well as a really cool woman and they hit it off the moment they met. She was visiting from Scotland as well and after extending her visa, they moved to Kentucky to help his parents with their trucking business. A year later they returned to Phoenix to get married.

Rodger and I did a one-year anniversary show as well. Hopefully I can find that a post it eventually, too. I’ve had about 50 tapes left from the 100+ shows of the series and only recently finally got some of them converted and posted to YouTube. At any rate, Rodger and Annie went back to Kentucky and just over a week later Rodger died in a car wreck on his way to work one morning. I understood why we seemed to always end up talking about the veil then. It was prep work.

Of course, in classic style he came to me a few days later as I entered my home. I got an intense feeling that I needed to lay down, like I was suddenly overwhelmed with fatigue. No sooner did I get prone than his face appeared in my vision (eyes closed) and I heard him say, “Hey, got something to show you.” For the next few minutes my vision was filled with video vignettes from the other side, offering further confirmation to our discussions and some tasty tidbits of information that answered some of my further questions about consciousness in general. You’ll find those peppered throughout my books. Just google’- ‘Zen Benefiel, author’ and you’ll find them. Or just look over at the sidebar.

I’ll be sharing another show soon, with comments about our discussion and future discoveries. All of these shows were recorded at the Glendale Public Access Studio, owned by Dimension Cable Services, from May of 1990 to August of 1922. I’m so grateful for the dedication of the volunteer crew and all the guests who participated. We were pioneers in the field at the time. Maybe someday I’ll have an opportunity to revisit the theme.

Self-Reflection

The process of critical reflection of assumptions empowers one and many to view influencing details that determines the ability to find consensus and harmony in any situation. Harmony does not mean the absence of conflict, merely the creative buy cialis 20mg use of it to resolve issues that inhibit cooperative and collaborative relationships in professional and personal environments.

The article presents perspectives of human patterns and the avenues available to establish collective understandings of beliefs, intentions, values and feelings to facilitate a ‘common’ reality that is workable for everyone. Critical reflection of assumptions is used to enter into a discourse to assess alternative beliefs, predicated on universal principles. CRA is used in Transformational Theory, Assimilative Learning, Objective Reframing, and Subjective Reframing for adult learning.

Transformational Theory

Transformational Theory (Mezirow, 1991,1995, 1996), which uses reflection, maintains human learning is promoted in communication through assessing intentions, values, moral issues, and feelings which requiring the use of critical reflection of assumptions. Transformational Theory holds that CRA is not a panacea or provides some transcendent experience to resolve conflict. Rather, it presents the process as a ‘best practice’ compared to other options that have been used in the workplace.

Assimilative Learning

Assimilative Learning, as used by psychoanalysts, pertains to adjustment or accommodation to a difficult situation by accepting it as conforming to one’s desire. This process moves one to act according to regulative principles, a way of thinking or behaving deemed more functional or acceptable. This seems to characterize the way adults learn to adapt to change, using tacit judgment to move forward to constructive results.

Objective Reframing

Objective Reframing examines established definitions, theories, and practices to better understand the paradigms influencing decision-making. Using critical reflection of a premise and defining a problem can lead to transformative redefinition and ‘problem posing.’ The objective of this process, in the all its facets, is to improve performance.

Subjective Reframing

In all of the above situations, critical reflection of assumptions is used in discursive groups to assess and manage flow of communication relative to outcomes desired within those same discursive groups that are commonly found within the workplace environment. The task for a manager is to creatively translate the use of critical reflection of assumptions and discourse to effectively facilitate conflict resolution in the workplace.

Questions:

What are the tools available for creating an atmosphere where critical reflection of assumptions can be used effectively? How can one facilitate the use of such tools in environments where human communications are predicated on form, fit and function of critical path assessments?

Potential Answers:

Human resource development programs using a combination of psychoanalytic assessment tools and facilitation training for employees are one possibility. Cultural diversity and sensitivity training for managers is another, as they can then affect communication in their respective departments. Team building or collaborative alliance training outside of the company’s environment is yet another possibility that offers professional development through reliance on others as well as self.

Critical path assessment, defining the basic fundamentals of production, can be introduced through various scenarios involving critical reflection of assumptions. One such opportunity would involve discovering the logic path used to streamline production processes, eliminating wasted resources and labor costs as a functional goal. Another would use interpersonal skills development to better affect communicating goals and objectives to a diverse population within the workforce.

Personal ethics statement: I will to do good for all, desiring to serve humanity in the highest and best use of my mind/body/spirit complex, in the facilitation of a new world order of harmony among people and planet through the development of a state-of-the-art model community and website that promotes this endeavor.

On this International Day of Peace, may we celebrate our connectedness, our harmony and our unity with One Mind, One Planet and One People operating with the understanding that we are inextricably intertwined with each other and our planet, more so that our minds may be able to grasp at this time, yet our hearts know it to be true somehow.

The Great Mystery is unfolding, bringing science and spirituality into a unified field, allowing humanity to speak one language beyond the religious and superstitious which has kept us separate for millennia. Resistance to this process is futile and we need to help each other through it in whatever ways appear in front of us on a moment to moment basis.

All the great prophets, sages and sayings are worthless if we ignore our symbiosis, with each other and our beautiful blue domed home. It is called ‘The Work’ because it does take effort to step away from the old ways of separation in all their surreptitious subtlety. For all I Am and all I do, this I know: I love and am loved… and so are you.

I understand the ideological complications with such a notion. We can acknowledge what has been collectively assigned as ‘International Peace Day’ if nothing else than with our intent. Shifting our internal thoughtmosphere is the first step to making the without as the within. Indeed, it is an arduous journey full of trials and tribulations sometimes unimaginable by others, yet nonetheless manifesting in front of us.

My suggestion for experimentation and validation is that we each turn away from responding to the manifestations of what we believe are vexations of spirit and/or humanity. Instead, allow the attention to entertain what we wish to achieve that is beneficial to ourselves and others and lead by example. People follow and respond to energy, often unconsciously, and examples of a different sort tend to stand out in the crowd.

Sure, the rash of naysayers may be the first round of response. I’ve experienced that sharing my experiences and understanding for over 30 years, yet it hasn’t stopped me from continuing. Over time, the articulation and presentation has become more refined and heart-centered while still appealing to the intellect when presented as a logical flow of deduction and experience.

If, like many, you feel you are here for a purpose then it is quite possible that this purpose is aligned with a natural state of harmony among people and planet that is evolving and presenting possibilities to coagulate even as you read this now. It is my experience that the inner voice speaks in various tones, from sensations to actual words that are undeniable when one listens. It is an experience that many have, yet are afraid to acknowledge to others because of the societal predispositions to denying anything beyond their direct experience.

I had a discussion just yesterday with a young woman in that same situation, an electrical engineer by profession, that has ‘heard’ and ‘sensed’ things beyond this reality for years. She felt that if she spoke of it to other that she would be deemed as ‘crazy’ and coworkers, friends and relatives would vanish from her life. I, too, have had that experience since my teenage years (I’m 55 now) and I don’t see it ending anytime soon – but there are more people who are finding each other and sharing their experiences now.

Traditionally these people have been deemed ‘fringe’ or ‘metaphysical’ or ‘new age’ yet they don’t profess allegiance to any of those circles or groups. I never have, but others tend to label you according to their belief system or peer pressure. Rising out of that muck is the greatest challenge, to stand in one’s truth is the ultimate test of faith…. not any religious rhetoric. It spans all religions yet embraces them all simultaneously.

Now we are learning to move beyond belief systems and devote ourselves to experience systems; practical ways and means to achieve collaborative goals that unite people to serve together for everyone’s highest good – harmony among people and planet.

What have you done over the last year or so to engage your dream? Do you even have one? If you don’t… why? I began Be The Dream in 1988 with a vision of becoming a leading resource for bridging the worlds of spirituality and supply… producing deliverables that make a difference in people’s lives personally and professionally.

I’ve spent the last couple of decades discovering, engaging, interpreting, testing, vetting and working to craft products and services that fulfill that desire and truly empower those who know there is more to life, more to living and more to consciousness than we are currently considering.

Over the last several decades I’ve been under the tutelage of various industries, mentors, educational institutions and most importantly, the school of hard knocks. The latter is most beneficial because it provides the stepping stones, the most important lessons that life offers on a daily basis – IF you are paying attention and aware of the process. I had a friend who countered the ‘Law of Attraction’ with the ‘Law of distraction and interruption’ as the most common result for people who are looking for enlightenment or success in life. We all fall short, get up, dust ourselves off and continue moving forward because we know it is in our best interest to do so.

There are many ways to find success and even more importantly – fulfillment – in life. All too often we lose the excitement of achieving our dreams in the moment we get ready to share them with others. Socially and spiritually we have been programmed to be discounted, insecure, unsure of our ability and capacity to perform at peak levels that match the belief system we profess. I’ve found that to be unacceptable and I hope you do too. It helps to have a great sense of humor, especially when it comes to noticing your own shortcomings and/or perceived mistakes.

So what do you do about it? I can only encourage you do something, but only AFTER you spend some time getting to know yourself better. You see, we lie to ourselves in the mirror of life a lot. So many are stuck in their mental projections of who they are that they miss the energetic projections that exude who they are to others. If you think that is incorrect, get still for a while and notice the difference between how you feel and what you think and project. If there is no disparity, then CONGRATULATIONS! You are there.. totally present and available to your BEing in the moment.

If your feelings and thoughts seem to be incongruous and/or appearing to have some cognitive dissonance, then you may feel a stirring within you now that is causing you to feel there might be something here for you. Indeed, there is… Just what I cannot say for sure just now. I can and do encourage you to look over the information below and make a purchase or two, allowing yourself to be drawn to what attracts you most. If there is nothing… that’s fine, too. I’m not a salesperson, per se, but I do want to persuade you to make a choice to help yourself and promote my resources as a possibility for you to do so. You will experience a change for the better.

So here is the list and it doesn’t have everything, but just compiling it made me realize another step in accomplishing my dream to help others has reached fruition. I look forward to hearing your results. If I can be of service in any way, please don’t hesitate to reach out to me and ask questions. I’ve never refused to help.

Service:

Transformational Life Coaching

Zen’s personal journey and professional careers give him a perspective that is rare in this world. If you’ve been looking for someone who understands and can help you negotiate life with all the weirdness, you need look no further. His expertise, patience and understanding will serve you well.https://bethedream-lifecoach.com/services/transformational_life_coach.htm

Partnering Workshops

We’ve worked with a variety of organizations from aerospace to education to building or road and bridge construction (DOT) to healing arts, so hard and soft skills are well understood and utilized in the partnering process. We bring your resource management to new levels of performance through creating great partnerships, involving individuals as stakeholders in the actualization of your mission and vision statements.http://www.teampartnering.com/default.htm

Books:

Cosmic Conundrum: Who Am I? …Coursework for Connecting

This psychospiritual coursework is designed to bridge worlds, build relationships across dimensions and transform lives during this global shift in consciousness. What you may think you know about yourself and multidimensional reality will be challenged as you explore the pages of this book.https://www.createspace.com/3560852

Zendor the Barbarian – An Adoptee’s Quest for Identity

A new millennial myth about an extraterrestrial contactee turned practical mystic. Imagine worlds undiscovered yet available to all, finding others like him along the way who share the quest for harmony among people and planet. “Who am I?” and “What am I here to do?” take on a whole new meaning.

From corporate conundrums in performance to political postulates for serving the needs of society to religious rhetoric meant to free our souls’ purpose to manifest in our daily lives to extraterrestrial contacts and messages of oneness… it’s a full stop when simple and obvious questions arise.https://www.createspace.com/3452312

Guided Imagery CDs

Multi-Plane Cosmonaut

This guided journey takes you into a world few ever enter, a journey through multiple planes of awareness that have a part of you on each one. In this exercise you will be guided through 9 planes of awareness that each has a ‘body’ and ‘senses’ beyond the physical body you inhabit currently.https://www.createspace.com/2054254

Multi-Level Awareness

Fashioned to give you the best experience in the shortest time-frame, this journey will absolutely delight you every time you use it. Your ability to ask internal questions and see with your inner vision are just two of the valuable experiences available through this guided session.https://www.createspace.com/2054264

Guided Imagery

Along the way and through the music and voice prompts you will be guided to create your own merkaba, the ultimate flying machine that will take you into the cosmos and to the perfect place just for you. Each individual is different and the embedded codes will ignite your soul and celestial intelligence already embedded within you.https://www.createspace.com/2054268

Music CDs

Dreams Enough

We began in the early 90s, learning how to play the space between the notes and began to merge into the void and out sprang numerous creative gestures and jesters. We span the gamut of emotion and sensory experience. You’ll want to dance to some, emote, soar and hold on to your seat with others.https://www.createspace.com/2054395

Deadly Return – Transcendence 911

This recording offers you the opportunity to acknowledge the dark side of life and have no fear of it. The excursion offered by these gifted musicians, your outcasts and social misfits of the new millennium, will grant you permission to find the door within and rise to the occasion of your life.https://www.createspace.com/2055093

A Para-Celestial Logic Syndrome

Soundscapes designed to take the listener into a cosmic adventure, free of belief systems and mental perturbations. What many have reported is that once you enter the thoughtmosphere within this music, there are multiple opportunities to ascend and transcend.https://www.createspace.com/2054390

Live @ The Jewish Pork Festival

An afternoon behind the Dixie Hotel, honoring the dead and celebrating the living. This was a rather magical encounter after six months of absence. We lept into the Void and a wonderful afternoon happened to get recorded. Sometimes the magic works as we traveled through many genres and styles.https://www.createspace.com/1970732

The title brings many images and sensations to life I’m sure. I’d like to focus on the virtual and physical world at the present moment and share some discussion of the conundrum of authenticity. We often respond from learned patterns rather than authentic behavior, confusing emotion for mindfulness. In my seemingly quiet moments I’m usually checking my own, caught up in pedantic rantings. But before I share more I’d like to update the happenings that have caused a gap in postings here.

Of course the last posting was about a new website, www.PlanetaryCitizens.net, that presents a more inclusive view of the variety of concerns involved in moving a planetary civilization from separation to unity; harmony among people and planet. If a new world order is to emerge soon, I want to make a thoughtful and wise contribution. In addition, there is now an author’s page on Amazon that features my books – Author Page – which offers a bit about my history. The creative process is so inebriating.

Operating Be The Dream, LLC as a bridge for business and spiritual practices is sometimes a tough sell in a market that is driven by competition and profits. As we are in an election year in the States it also seemed appropriate to create a new campaign that reflects what we all want: to love and be loved. So please visit The Love Party Campaign and try the simple exercises for personal and planetary transformation. It would be great if you ‘liked’ it on Facebook, too.

Robin and I were talking this morning about how we see the gap between the virtual world, the internet, and the real world as face-to-face engagement. More importantly we ventured into the theme of bridging these worlds and what people are like in each that both promotes and inhibits this action. Our conversation brought up some interesting points that I’d like to bring to this blog. I love how our conversations bring us to question our current understanding and grow with the discovery of our ability to articulate as a result of the internal exploration.

Initially, the topic of ‘authenticity’ came up as we were discussing the challenges of internet persona and face-to-face engagement. In both worlds there are levels of authenticity that deserve a deeper look. We often were masks in both worlds. I’m not an expert in authenticity at all, but I do have some opinions. All of us have a sense of wanting to belong somewhere, but the fear of rejection often keeps us from revealing our honest thoughts and feelings regarding whatever topic may be in process of discovery or discussion. Some find it easier to be authentic on the web because of the anonymity the internet offers, especially when using a fictitious name or profile. The latter is incomplete in authenticity although one’s honest experience, opinion or thoughts may be expressed.

In the face-to-face world there is also a lack of authenticity due to the fear of rejection of one’s peers and/or employers who have a different agenda or are hiding their inner thoughts and feelings for the same reasons. Another stumbling block is we each have different dictionaries from which we draw meaning, so what another person says my trigger or soothe us and so some don’t risk being misunderstood. I’ve found that being misunderstood, if I can recognize the fact, gives me a chance to engage in a deeper and often more intimate level of conversation. Sometimes the pace of the environment doesn’t allow it, but I find slowing things down a bit has an overall beneficial effect.

We moved on to discussing best practices in facilitating groups during training sessions, given material and time constraints. We considered both viewpoints of facilitator and participant, knowing the we’ve experienced a variety of disconnects and frustrations in each role. We’ve facilitated classrooms, events and workshops over the years so we have some understanding of the challenges. Bridging worlds in this instance involves understanding that each person shows up with a different set of values, morals and ethics as well as a labyrinth of terms and phrases that may trigger or soothe.

Facilitators are strapped with agendas, maintaining decorum and timelines, that may not allow for everyone to have a voice if participants are allowed to ramble on (as they tend to do). Proactive discussion happens before launching into the material and norms are set so that nobody’s feelings are hurt if they are cut off so that others can speak. The flow of the conversation/meeting is important and master facilitators practice active listening, often gleaning the essence of the speaker’s message and clarifies quickly in order to manage the flow. We’ve learned that knowing your audience is tantamount to running successful events/groups/meetings and active listening is a critical component.

A participant has multiple reasons for being there including learning, mandatory attendance, agreement with and support of the theme, information gathering (pro & con… knowing your ‘enemy’ is important), to offer expertise, to garner attention, take an opportunistic advantage or simply to participate in some yet to be determined way. So that brought up the question of, “How am I being perceived by the facilitator/group?” In an environment where few folks really know each other, this is a major concern or needs to be. Some interact quickly while others wait and still others never say a word. One almost needs to be somewhat psychic just to read the room.

As we each consider how to promote and support our passions in life, myriad choices arise. Which ones are best? Do we really know? How does one determine that best choice or those best choices? In our experience we’ve noticed our attitudes affect not only our level of involvement, but the general atmosphere of whatever environment we engage. If you’ve been following any kind of conscious development or spiritual path you’ve no doubt come across the idea that your thoughts affect everything. How aware are you of not only what you are thinking, but HOW you are thinking? Do you find yourself in a critical or supportive role most often? What is that like?

To draw some kind of conclusion is our nemesis in most environments. Maintaining an open forum for discussion works wonders. We limit what can happen through our prejudice. That prejudice could be detrimental or supportive, but it still limits possibility. Sometimes we think that by voicing concerns or facts that we are being supportive, but the internal perspective actually diminishes the energy because of the words that are spoken. It may not seem so because we simply want to inform others, but what are we really informing them of and how will it affect the lives of others? Anything that distracts from a concerted effort or focus of attention on creating positive results is then suspect in the discovery of insidious and surreptitious thoughts.

How we think is at issue. Do we generally come from an optimistic place or are we looking to expose something we think everyone should know because it is the truth? Are we thinking of how to bridge worlds to create a better environment or are we engaged in conspiratorial information as a need-to-know? It is imperative to notice where we put our attention and emotion and our energy flows into that reservoir. Where do you want your attention? Are you following some belief system or are you creating an experience system through your ethic and intention?

Back to creating harmony from chaos… order. We don’t know what each person brings to the table in conversation or working groups. Making sense common is a prime objective of any facilitator. That ‘sense’ comes from developing rapport and building relationships with individuals and groups in order to achieve common goals, objectives and understanding. If we want to achieve our dreams, whatever they are, then beginning with an attitude of gratitude is probably a good place to start. The mere fact that one has the opportunity to be an example offers both challenge and change, from the chaotic possibilities of chance to the organized and strategic methods to achieve order that leads to success in any environment.

Are we really one?

Is this a question we ask in our daily deliberations? If we do, what do our answers reflect? How do we respond in our thoughts and actions on a moment to moment basis?

Amidst the daily travails of tending to our relationships on personal and professional levels, the question might never arise. Some years ago, nearly 36 now, I had a near death experience that changed the way I viewed life and set me firmly on the path of inquiry. I became and eduholic in the trust sense, I dug deep within me to bring out the knowledge we are supposed to have access to according to everything I’ve read and studied. Have you found the latter to be true as well?

The more I questioned, the more fun life became and opportunities to explore what I could do continued to knock on my door. I excelled in school and sports when I was young and coagulated possibilities across a number of industries as I continued to develop skills. My early marriage failed, though, and hardened my heart toward money as a result. Twenty three years after the divorce and I’m finally recognizing just how deeply wounded I was, heal myself, and creatively open to ascend from the pit. Honestly, I would not have grown to know the secrets of relationship had I healed earlier.

So, back to the question: Are we really one?

To me, because I am an assimilation of my experiences, I hear that question from a different place than most. Beyond the profound personal and professional relationships I’ve developed over the years, there has been a part of me that has remained an observer. I had a recent experience that might make that a little clearer.

On the morning of Good Friday last, seems so fitting now, I was breaking up the lox to add to the eggs and then pour into the sauteed onions simmering on the stove. I was enjoying the moment when suddenly I felt a wave of depression so deep that it caught all of my attention. I mused for a moment, wondering what the heck that was all about. I turned to the stove to pour the mixture into the skillet and noticed that my body was beginning to go limp. I could feel it slipping away and was completely conscious of it, like we were about to separate.

I called for Robin (I knew I was going to head for the bed and our breakfast needed tending) and headed for the bedroom. I was just able to get to the bed and sprawl upon it. I could hear perfectly and was able to speak as well, yet the rest of my body wasn’t cooperating, nor did I particularly want it to at the time. I was rather enjoying the sensation as I was still fully conscious and not afraid of anything.

As I lay there while Robin was tending to breakfast, my eyes were closed. In my field of sight, I noticed a fuzzy thin circle of light that was pulsing in and out, smaller to larger from a ball of light in the center to the circle that took up about 80% of my screen. I watched it for a number of cycles, checking my breathing rate compared to it (different) and feeling my heart beat as I watched. It was really pretty relaxing and when you’ve lost the need to control your body, it was quite freeing to say the least.

I can only assume that, because of the waves of cosmic energy we’re encountering as we move further into the Photon Belt, we can avail ourselves as open-hearted humans seeking to know more about how to be spiritual; connected to everything in ways we are only beginning to experience. There are myriads of folks around the planet who have congruent views and mobius operandi of sorts. I checked in to see if others had similar experiences that day and, oddly enough, many did. Some even experienced their ‘wave’ at the same time. Interesting….

How did we arrive at being available, let alone aware, of this type of possibility? We began tracing the origins of religion to determine where the incongruous or missing data was located. Certainly what we have today is far from the root of the word ‘religion’ – reunion with God. Isn’t that ‘oneness,’ though? A reunion with God? How does that work?

Since my upbringing was Christian, I’ll proffer the findings that led to an interesting conclusion. How were we created? Before Adam and Eve was Adam and Lilith. The latter was a story of equality; created from the same material, at the same time and with equal power. So that cleared the whole patriarchal nonsense up. Constantine did a great job, uniting religion and politics with harsh punishment for those who didn’t follow the faith. Most of our current data is skewed on purpose, leading us astray rather than home.

Then there was the question of Satan. Where did that come from? A considerable amount of research and time showed that the Greek ‘thetan’ was the culprit. It means ‘thinker.’ So our adversary is our mind. Now THAT makes sense. Many years later I had a conversation with Jesus (yes, it’s possible) and he verified that he fought with his mind and not some external tempter. His battle and fears are the same as mine, not being quiet enough to hear well and miss the call for fulfilling my divine mission here on Earth.

So what was that all about? Jesus was different. He demonstrated the connection with the divine and encouraged others to do so as well. He called attention to any lack of integrity, liability, limitation or excuse for limiting their relationship with life and love. Ultimately, he led the way for us to understand that death is not inevitable and that we truly can transcend it just as he did, such as his words to Thomas, “Don’t ye know that ye are god as I am god?” I think that qualifies as oneness, eh?

Now that led me to wondering about Lucifer. According to the records, he was the Most High Angel of Light and Music. Knowing the parameters of quality contained in light and music, there seems little to on likelihood that one of that status would abandon their post. I learned that ‘condensed’ was used in place of ‘fallen’ in some of the ancient texts. Wow, the light went off. Every pun intended there. Lucifer led us into form through condensing our celestial consciousness into these bodies. It has been so long ago that no one remembers.

However, Jesus example of taking us back home – returning to the Father – makes wonderful sense when you look at the ‘cycle’ of incarnation and ascension. No doubt it could take many lifetimes for a consciousness to regain the connections to the finer vibrations after being so dense as a carbon-based life-form. In case that raised an eyebrow, 666 is the atomic number… then number of man, revealed through science. Could be arguable, but you’ve got to admit it all makes sense from a perspective of ONE.

Individuality is not threatened by this perspective at all. In fact, it is encourage through free will, yet there are apparently some blueprints on the soul level that manage the operation of each. Astrology gives us a hint of our potential and provides us with parameters that most closely fit our character and personality in alignment with the stars. Since we come from the stars, stardust, it might make sense to have a working knowledge or your arrangement. Even without it, you can notice how you’ve developed knowledge, skill sets and vocational aptitude over time. If you hate your job, then you probably aren’t aligned with your chart. If you love what you are doing, then the opposite is most likely.

What about business, though? How does that work? Most recently, the International Standards Organization came out with the ISO 26000 standards for social responsibility. The more businesses, companies and corporations can align their behavior with these standards, the better chance we have of creating a new world order of harmony among people and planet and creating harmony from the chaos.

Curious Sorts…. New World Standards

Created for Humanity’s Team and Barbara Marx Hubbard

We all seek to understand exactly who we are in order to figure out what we are to do, I think. Have we become too myopic for our own good? Are we capable of shifting if that is the case? How deep is the rabbit hole and how deep can we go in our assessment of what needs to be done and do it? What does the lexicon: Jobarchy bring up for you? Does it sound like the job is the boss? Hmmm… that aligns with service to others -Ra. We find out who we really are in the process of serving. Wow, sounds like the ultimate win/win.

There is a sense of restlessness among the American people. Something is happening in our nation that appears manipulated, even to the casual observer, and we feel helpless in its wake. It amazes the author that a powerful society, led by corporate giants, military elite, and political prominence has gone unchecked for so long. Some time ago, individuals were made sovereign in the United States yet the sovereignty, voting rights, are only used by about a third of those able to vote. What happened?

With respect to all my relatives, it is quite well known through several variations on the theme that the US is supposed to lead by example into the Golden Age, or whatever we choose to call it now. Right? “When the people lead, the leaders will follow” is a button that I have on my favorite jacket. It is truly an honor to be amongst the initiators of the AC. Its commandry complement is a ONEderful process to behold. I feel good about people returning to love after feeling apart. Kinda makes your eyes water a little, huh?

Many voices are echoing a concern for people and planet, renewable and sustainable resources, and the shift needed in our ‘global village’ consciousness. Diversity issues are rampant in the enlightened community still; affecting our ability to perform. I wonder if there is Viagra for the soul? Sheeple, unsuspecting of the adverse effects of cutting edge advertising and marketing, continue to bicker about insignificant issues in the grand scheme of things, yet, will not raise an eyebrow of concern when we spend billions of dollars on foreign aid in a stalled economy. Pointing fingers and crying wolf is certainly not an option. Who listens anyway?

Why not just develop solutions with all the new ‘best practices’ of management philosophy applied to holistic understanding? Begs the question of naivety doesn’t it? Maybe it is better to not know what cannot be done so that we can co-create what answers the situations that are staring us in the face?

I believe when we focus on those things we will experience a wonderful unfoldment of our individual identities far brighter that we ever dreamed possible. By surrendering our lives to the cause, we gain them back exponentially. Kinda funny how that works, huh? We all recognize the spirals of coming into awareness and because of that we become quite forgiving of others, and our own, faults. We’re all doing our best to find common ‘space’ so to speak.

There is a new collective evolving in society- the Cultural Creatives. The Cultural Creatives, a new book by Paul Ray, Ph.D., and Sherry Ruth Anderson, Ph.D., based on research sponsored by the Institute of Noetic Sciences and The Fetzer Institute, estimates that 50 million adult Americans resonate with the emerging new values. The following are just a few:

• Spirituality and personal growth • Self-esteem and self-empowerment

• Community • Social healing, reconciliation and conflict resolution

This collective is growing and becoming more restless as lives are lost unnecessarily, through little wills of men. Feminine consciousness and meaningful work are more traits the collective shares. Men can think with just one head when they are secure in themselves. Together constructed plans, projects, and proposals are being shared that utilize our collective passion to love and be loved, beginning with ourselves and expanding into our workplaces, businesses, organizations and schools.

This movement is developing a network of its own throughout the World Wide Web. Where will it go? How can we all have a hand in its direction and find a place for ourselves in the process? There is an area within Human Resources that seeks to answer those questions and more. It is called Organizational Development, or OD in jargon terms. There is a science emerging that reveals how humans with spiritual understanding (connectedness of all things) actually mold and shape their environments to a greater degree of integration, even practiced as diversity initiatives in larger corporations.

Be The Dream is just one group that fits into the collective, offering a variety of concepts, plans, and resources for evolving our society in a big way. As much time as it took to gather information, write and edit, post and build a website to support the effort, it is pale by comparison to the exponential effect from the affect of the individuals devoting their lives to this paradigm shift, this change agentry within the global village. Many unsung heroes and heroines spend countless hours constructing and creating marvelous works on the Web.

Who is guiding, leading, and following? Is any of that happening? How can we utilize our group soul better? As a great man once said, “Change comes from within.” What does it look like when it gets out? Imagine if all our hearts’ desires and dreams expressed in cyberspace and inner-space started leaking out into our everyday space. WOW… worlds of wonder!

Here is one way that may be happening sooner than later. The International Organization for Standards (ISO) has already garnered corporate attention with the ISO 9000 quality management standards. A new and improved social responsibility standard, ISO 26000, was introduced after years of development. It’s premise, to be a first step in helping all types of organization in both the public and private sectors to consider implementing ISO 26000 as a way to achieve the benefits of operating in a socially responsible manner.

From iso.org:

ISO 26000 provides guidance for all types of organization, regardless of their size or location, on:

Concepts, terms and definitions related to social responsibility

Background, trends and characteristics of social responsibility

Principles and practices relating to social responsibility

Core subjects and issues of social responsibility

Integrating, implementing and promoting socially responsible behaviour throughout the organization and, through its policies and practices, within its sphere of influence

Identifying and engaging with stakeholders

Communicating commitments, performance and other information related to social responsibility.

ISO 26000 is intended to assist organizations in contributing to sustainable development. It is intended to encourage them to go beyond legal compliance, recognizing that compliance with law is a fundamental duty of any organization and an essential part of their social responsibility. It is intended to promote common understanding in the field of social responsibility, and to complement other instruments and initiatives for social responsibility, not to replace them.

In applying ISO 26000, it is advisable that an organization take into consideration societal, environmental, legal, cultural, political and organizational diversity, as well as differences in economic conditions, while being consistent with international norms of behaviour. [end]

Now we have the opportunity to rise above our differences and focus on what is important to all of us in order to move forward as a planetary civilization.